Man charged with attempted murder held at hospital

Weymouth police say the homeless man who came at officers with a knife Friday night was being sought for taking off his GPS monitoring bracelet.

Fred Hanson The Patriot Ledger @Fhanson_Ledger

A homeless man shot by Weymouth police after he allegedly lunged at officers with a knife is being hospitalized and held without bail.

William J. Sylvester, 35, was arraigned Monday in his hospital bed at South Shore Hospital, where he's recovering from a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to the lower torso. The court entered an innocent plea on his behalf on two counts of assault with intent to murder and a single count of failure to register as a sex offender.

Sylvester covered his face with his bed sheet during the arraignment to try to avoid his picture being taken by the media. Quincy District Court Judge Mary Orfanello denied a motion made by attorney Sandra Gant, Sylvester's court-appointed defense lawyer, to prohibit journalists from entering the hospital room to watch and record the arraignment.

Sylvester will be held without bail and remain at the hospital for treatment. A hearing will be held next Tuesday to determine whether he'll be healthy enough to participate in a dangerousness hearing.

Sylvester was arrested Friday night after police said he came at officers with a knife while police were responding to a domestic disturbance at the Brookside Condominiums, 215 Winter St. The homeless man was already being sought by police for taking off his GPS monitoring bracelet.

Sylvester had been released from jail in March and was required to wear a GPS monitoring device as a condition of his parole, Weymouth Police Capt. Richard Fuller said. Police had been looking for him since he took off the device.

Fuller said officers responded to a report of an unwanted person involved in a domestic disturbance at the condominium at 11:52 p.m. Friday. He said an acquaintance of Sylvester’s was staying in the unit.

When the officers arrived, Fuller said they were met by the caller, who told them that Sylvester was in the bedroom.

“Initial indications are that as the officers entered the bedroom, Sylvester brandished a knife and immediately lunged at the officers,” Fuller said. “Both officers simultaneously fired upon Sylvester and he was struck in the lower torso.”

Sylvester was taken by ambulance to South Shore Hospital with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, he said.

The two officers involved in the shooting were placed on paid administrative leave, which Fuller said is standard procedure following a shooting. The officers, who were not identified, also went to the hospital as a precaution following the shooting.

The Brookside Condominiums are in a five-story brick-and-block building at the corner of Winter and Middle streets, not far from the police station. The complex has about 80 units.

Jack Flaherty, who lives a floor below where the shooting took place, said that police have been called to that unit frequently.

“There are a lot of good people in his building,” said Flaherty, who has lived in the building for several years. “One or two bad people aren’t going to force me out.”

Weymouth police and State Police detectives assigned to the Norfolk County District Attorney’s Office are investigating the incident.

The last shooting involving Weymouth police officers took place in October 2010, when a 16-year-old boy with a knife lunged at a police officer and was shot in the shoulder outside his Memorial Drive home.

Christian Schiavone also contributed to this story. Fred Hanson may be reached at fhanson@ledger.com.